Birthday: Oct 22, 1966

Birthplace: Naples, Campania, Italy

Biography: The second child of an Italian germanist and a Greek painter, Valeria Golino grewup in Naples until her parents parted. After three years in Athens with her motherand another three in Naples with her father, she began to work as a model. She lefthigh school after her first movie and didn't study performing arts at all. In 1985she got the leading role in Piccoli fuochi (1985) by Peter Del Monte and the nextyear won the Best Actress Award at the Venice Film Festival for Storia d'amore(1986). After... ... (read more...) some European co-productions (Dernier ?t? ? Tanger (1987), Occhialid'oro, Gli (1987), Paura e amore (1988)) she began to work in Hollywood (Big TopPee-wee (1988)). She soon gained prominent roles in Rain Man (1988), Hot Shots!(1991) and Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993). Now she works in the US (Clean Slate(1994), An Occasional Hell (1996)), Europe (Putain du roi, La (1990), ImmortalBeloved (1994)) and in Italy. too, especially with young directors (Come duecoccodrilli (1994), Acrobate, Le (1997), Albero delle pere, L' (1998)). In 1994 sheproduced and acted in Sfagi tou kokora, I (1996) by Greek director Andreas Pantzis.Her voice is more appreciated in Hollywood (where she took speech therapy) than inItaly (where she is sometimes dubbed); in "The Slaughter of the Cock" she acts as adeaf and dumb woman. She speaks four languages: Italian, Greek, French and English.Her brother is a musician and their uncle Enzo Golino is a famous journalist.